


Don't Return

by Ren_Dreamt_The_Cosmos



Category: How to Train Your Dragon (Movies)
Genre: Alternate Universe, Alternate Universe - Canon Divergence, BAMF Hiccup Horrendous Haddock III, Blood, Blood and Gore, Chief Hiccup Horrendous Haddock III, F/M, Gen, Hurt, Hurt Hiccup Horrendous Haddock III, Hurt/Comfort, Older Hiccup Horrendous Haddock III, Other Additional Tags to Be Added, Protective Hiccup Horrendous Haddock III, Runaway Hiccup Horrendous Haddock III, Time Skips, Violence, What-If
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2019-10-10
Updated: 2020-04-09
Packaged: 2020-11-28 20:36:03
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 6
Words: 12,141
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/20972672
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Ren_Dreamt_The_Cosmos/pseuds/Ren_Dreamt_The_Cosmos
Summary: Hiccup left Berk thirteen years ago with Toothless. He vowed never to return. Will he hold to that vow? What has changed in those years? Who is the man behind the mask, this mysterious chief of the previously unheard of Drakoak tribe? These questions flood the minds of the Berkians, who demand answers. (Not Hiccstrid, sorry.)[THIS FIC HAS NOTHING TO DO WITH HTTYD: THE HIDDEN WORLD. IT IS A CLASSIC "What-if Hiccup ran away?" FIC]Rarely updated.





	1. Chapter 1

**Author's Note:**

> I started writing this in 2015, forgive me for making it Hiccup/OC :/ I love Hiccstrid nowadays.
> 
> Helpful information for this chapter/fic:
> 
> •For most most of this fic, it'll have been thirteen years since Hiccup left Berk (instead of fifteen as I had previously), so he'll be around twenty-eight.
> 
> •Drakoak is Pronounced: Drack-Oh-Ack
> 
> •Hiccup hasn't lost his leg.
> 
> •Astrid never found out about Hiccup and Toothless.
> 
> •This is Hiccup/OC, but not self-insert or Hiccup/Reader, nor is it Astrid-bashing :)

Hiccup smiled as Toothless sped through the night sky, dipping to glide lightly across the frothing waves, splashing Hiccup with a couple drops of the salty ocean water.

"Alright Bud, let's head back." Hiccup fondly patted Toothless's side, chuckling softly as the dragon warbled, unhappy with the ending of their flight. "I promised we wouldn't stay out too late, you know."

Hiccup rolled his eyes as Toothless shook his head, warbling mockingly, before tilting his body and using his powerful wings to turn, before swiftly flying back towards their home.

As the cool wind pulled at Hiccup, the dragon trainer pressed close to the neck of the sleek black Night Fury, his dark cloak and flight suit blending into the reflective scales of the dragon below him.

As the fiery and bright lights of their home came into view in the far off distance, shining off of the reflective water, Hiccup reached a hand up to adjust his mask, making sure any identifying facial features of his were covered.

The mask was a simple one, it went over his head and attached to his short cloak, making it impossible for it to fly off and be lost. The mask was black, with dragon scales covering the surface, making for an intimidating appearance. The scales were obtained from Toothless, ones that he had shed or accodently torn off over the years.

It had been a long five years.

But it was definitely worth it, in Hiccup's mind. Hiccup eyes narrowed at the thought of Berk, his previous home.

They had abused him there, kicking him, beating him up, making him feel worthless, like a mistake.

He had nobody to call a friend back then.

Until he found Toothless, that was.

The young viking and injured Night Fury had become the best of the best of friends, proven by when they ran away together, the day before he was scheduled to kill that innocent Monstrous Nightmare..

Hiccup glanced up at the stars sparkling within the night sky, reminiscing upon how he had ended up where he was currently.

Hiccup had taken off on that fateful day, taking Toothless and just flying as far away from Berk as he could, soaring out over the ocean.

After they had been flying for a few days, and taking a few breaks on islands, Hiccup and Toothless got shot down, thankful not ending with the loss of limbs for either of the two, landing on an island and being surrounded by a crowd of armed and hostile villagers… but with a stroke of luck, they saw the connection he had established with Toothless, and they cut the pairs restraints, asking only that he taught them the way of befriending the dragons.

Hiccup had made friends and connections with the village, which was named the Drakoak Clan.

Once he and Toothless has joined the the Drakoak clan and spent the first few months of their stay helping out and endearing himself to the kind people of the village, the chief who had no children, Hoarif The Thoughtful, had adopted him, taking in Hiccup and giving him more attention and care than Hiccups own biological father, Stoick the Vast, had done in Hiccups whole life. Hiccup had grown to love Hoarif as a father throughout the many years they have spent together, which he had spent teaching about dragons, making friends, and, a few years ago, getting married.

Hiccup smiled, thinking of his lovely wife Kala, who was most likely waiting for him, fast asleep, back at their house on Drakoak.

Hiccup had met her when he was wandering throughout the village recently after arriving. They had immediately hit it off, talking and laughing together, smiling and sharing many close moments.

Hiccup had proposed on her birthday, with the help of Toothless. The dragon had flown them out to an isolated island, and he had led her over to a grove of trees that he knew Kala loved to sit by and watch the ocean from, and he had knelt down, and proposed to her with a custom made bow and arrow, engraved with her initials and family crest. Kala had gasped in shock before enveloping him in a tight hug and saying yes. They had walked to the edge of a cliff which overlooked the ocean, and sat together, finding Drakoak was visible in the distance. They spent the rest of the night leaning against one another, content to spend their night together happily.

That was four years ago, as Hiccup had proposed when he was sixteen. It may seem young, but many Vikings got engaged in their youth as their lifestyle was a rough one and you never knew when you would die, so the earlier the better.

And just around two and a half years ago, their daughter had been born. Kala and Hiccup had named her Elva, a name with the meaning of Fair in Norse.

Hiccup shook his head to bring himself back to the present, looking down to see Toothless was gliding towards a hill and the house that was perched on the top, trees surrounding the back of it, the front open to overlook the groupings of houses below the hill.

They had arrived at Drakoak.

Hiccup felt a nary a jolt as Toothless gently landed on the soft grass, and then he hopped of, gently jumping to the grass next to the house which Toothless had landed outside of.

Before entering the residence Hiccup stretched his muscles, his legs sore from being in the same position for so long. The man looked up to the moon, which was full and bright, hanging high as it illuminated the dark night sky.

It was pretty late; Kala and Elva were most likely already asleep. Hiccup and Toothless walked to the door of his house, which was a two story home, built out of a darkly colored wood with a balcony overlooking the village below the hill.

Once inside, Hiccup quietly crept through the living room over to the storage closet, and hung up his cloak, flight suit, and mask, before taking off his boots and gently setting them on the floor, leaving him in just knee length brown pants, and a light grey sleeved shirt. Once he had hung up his outfit, he motioned Toothless to come over to him.

As Toothless stood next to him, Hiccup took off the saddle, bags, and harness from the dragon, before closing the closet.

With that chore complete, they both quietly made their way back through the living room, then the kitchen, then up the short set of stairs, emerging in a hallway.

The duo crept down the hallway to the door at the end, Hiccup pausing to look through a door, which was cracked open. Inside was a small bed, where a young girl sleeping peacefully, an arm securely tucking a small dragon toy to her side, as if protecting the small thing.

After checking on Elva, Hiccup quietly opened the door at the end of the hall, allowing Toothless to get through before closing it quietly behind them. Inside the room was Toothless's bed rock in the corner, two sets of drawers, a door set in the far wall that lead to the balcony, two windows, and a large bed. Toothless quickly crept over to his rock and walked in a circle, heating it up before he laid down on the now warm rock, and closed his eyes, letting out a quiet yawn and flicking his ears before lying still.

Hiccup walked over to the bed, lifting the covers and sliding in next to his wife, who was still sleeping. Before lying down to sleep, Hiccup looked at Kala, thanking the gods for letting him have such a good life, for having a wife and a family.

Kala was beautiful, she was slim, and tall, lanky just like Hiccup, with soft, pale skin, and freckles everywhere. Her shoulder length hair was a beautiful shade of brown with blond streaks from her time spent in the sun. While Hiccup was unable to see her eyes due to her being asleep, he knew that they were a beautiful shade of green, close to his own eyes. Hiccup smiled as he looked at his wife, lying down next to her and pulling the covers up to his shoulder, closing his tired eyes as he quickly drifted into a peaceful sleep.*

He most certainly did not regret leaving Berk.

He had a good life here on Drakoak, with little to no regrets, and very few problems.

Or so he thought, as that was soon to change.

《◇》


	2. Chapter 2

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hope you are enjoying this fic

Hiccup awoke to the loud sound of someone knocking on his door, a repetitive sound that shook him from his dreams.

Hiccup yawned as he lifted the covers off of his body, swinging his legs over the edge of the bed and quickly making his way downstairs. As he neared the front door of the house the man stopped to open the closet, quickly pulling on his boots and swinging his cloak onto his back before resuming his path to the door, clipping his mask to the back of his cloak but not pulling it over his head yet.

Hiccup straightened as he pulled the door open, revealing an older man, Samuel; Kalas father, with a distraught look on his face. Hiccup glanced over the man's shoulder, and saw a crowd gathered in the village square at the base of the small hill.

"Samuel? What in Thor is going on?!" Hiccup asked the man, who gulped and scratched the back of his head anxiously.

"It's… It's the chief!" Samuel exclaimed. "He's..." Samuel glanced away, trailing off.

"What?!" Hiccup felt fear flood his heart as his mind filled with possibilities of what could've happened. "What's happening with Hoarif?!" Hiccups demanded as he thought of his adoptive father and the many things that could have happened to him, none of them good.

"Hoarif is stepping down as chief!" Samuel finally cried out, waving his arms in dramatic fashion.

"Wh-What?!" Hiccup failed, eyes widened in confusion and shock. And then, before the two men could continue the conversation, they heard footsteps- Kala coming down the stairs, and into the living room behind them.

"Hiccup, what is going on? You'll wake Elva!" Kala scolded her husband, before spotting Samuel in the doorway of the home. "Dad? What are you doing here?"

"I'm here to…" Samuel started.

"Kala, Hoarif is stepping down!" Hiccup cried. Kalas eyes widened, and then she nodded, quickly running upstairs, and returning a few moments later with Elva, still sleeping, enveloped in her arms, head resting against her shoulder. Kala gently made her way past her husband, and met Samuels gaze.

"Let's go." Kala motioned to the door. "Hiccup needs to speak with his father about this." Samuel simply nodded and started down the hill, Hiccup and Kala hurrying behind him.

As they walked, Toothless ran out of the house and caught up to them, Hiccup slinging his leg over Toothless's back and pulling himself onto the dragons saddle-less back and both of them dashed ahead of Samuel, heading towards Hoarifs hut, which was placed on the edge of the village square.

The dragon trainer thought over what Samuel said on the way there. Hiccup couldn't imagine being chief, all the responsibilities, the importance.

Hiccup was jolted out of his thoughts as Toothless slowed to a stop in front of Hoarifs home, letting Hiccup jump off. Toothless waited outside as Hiccup quickly ran into his adoptive fathers home.

Once making it through the door and closing it behind him Hiccup looked up and saw that Hoarif was sitting at his kitchen table, head resting in his hands. Hiccup slowly walked forward, and pulled out a chair, sitting down across from Hoarif.

"Hoarif, is what Samuel told me... is it true?" Hiccup uttered.

"Me stepping down as chief?" Hoarif kept his head down, eyes trained on the table.

Hiccup nodded, forgetting that his father wouldn't be able to see it, before voicing his confirmation. "Yes."

"It is…" Hoarif raised his head and met Hiccup eyes. "I have decided to step down."

"But... why?" Hiccup breathed, confused as to why his dad would choose to do this.

"I believe it is time for you to take the duties of being a Chief, and I am getting old." Hoarif simply said, staring into Hiccups green eyes. Hiccup looked away, before sighing and then looked back at Hoarif, slightly nodding once.

"Fine, but you're going help me, okay dad?" Hiccup smiled at his adoptive father.

"Fine, son. Make your dad do all the hard work." Hoarif rolled his eyes jokingly before getting up, and walking over to Hiccup, hugging him so tightly his feet left the floor.

Once Hoarif set Hiccup down, they both walked towards the door, Hoarif slinging his arm around Hiccups shoulder.

"Are you going to announce it right away?" Hiccup asked, glancing at the man.

"If it's fine with you, we can do the ceremony right away." Hoarif looked at Hiccup, who nodded again, and they opened the door and walked outside together.

Immediately they were surrounded by Kala, Samuel, and Karine, Kalas mother, all of them asking questions, talking over each other and making a ruckus.

After Hoarif shouted for silence, they headed to the Great Hall, which was next to the docks of Drakoak. Once the crowd arrived and everyone was sitting down at the long tables, Hoarif and Hiccup stood on the stage at the front of the hall and motioned for silence. Hiccup stood slightly behind Hoarif as the Chief stepped forward to speak.

"As you all know, I am growing older. You also know that Hiccup is my adoptive son. Five years ago Oakley," Hoarif motioned to the second commander of the army, who was sitting in the front of the hall. "here, shot down Hiccup and his dragon Toothless, who were flying over the north side of the village." Oakley blushed at this, and mouthed an apologetic 'sorry' at Hiccup, who nodded and smiled, mouthing 'it's okay' back, before Hoarif continued. "Once Toothless crashed to the ground, we saw Hiccup on his back, and the true connection they had, like they were brothers, best friends. We released them and they forgave us, teaching us how to ride dragons, to train them, befriend them. Hiccup here, he changed the Drakoak clan, for the better. And now, I will be stepping down, allowing Hiccup to take over as chief of the Drakoak Tribe. All of those who approve of my decision say 'Aye'." Hoarif finished. Hiccup almost covered his ears as the hall filled with sound of people loudly cheering and screaming 'Aye!' Hiccup walked forward, and stood next to Hoarif, who grabbed his shoulder, and turned so he and Hiccup faced each other.

"Hiccup Horrendous Haddock III, of the Drakoak Tribe, formerly of the Berk Tribe, do you promise to protect your tribe, your people, to fulfill your chiefly duties, and defend Drakoak against all attacker, even to the point of risking your own life?" Hoarif trained his eyes on Hiccup. Hiccup closed his eyes as he inhaled deeply, thinking about what he was taking on, before he opened them, meeting his father's eyes.

"I do." Hiccup nodded, and then Hoarif and he turned to face the crowd.

"I hereby declare Hiccup Horrendous Haddock III as the new chief of the Drakoak Tribe!" Hoarif exclaimed, grabbing and raising Hiccups hand to the sky. The Hall exploded with cheers, Kala rushing up onto the stage, Elva in one arm who was awake and giggling happily, the other arm enveloping Hiccup.

"Oh Hiccup! I'm so proud of you!" Kala cried. Hiccup hugged her back, and then they joined hands, and Kala switched Elva to Hiccups arm, and then they walked out of the Hall, Hoarif leading them, the rest of the assembled tribe following as they began the celebrations for the newly inducted chief.

《◇》

*_~Eight years later~_*

Astrid used one hand to tuck a stray strand of blonde hair behind her ear as the other gripped the side of the ships railing, nails digging into the wood as the woman braced herself for the inevitable crash. The ship she was upon was racing for a beach, barely visible through the pouring rain and blinding lightning that would illuminate the night sky for a moment before plunging the crew back into the darkness of the night. The beach the ship was heading towards was on the side of an island which looked like it was populated, if Astrid was to guess by the lights that were scattered on one side of it.

Astrid prayed to the gods that the villagers on the island would notice them, and weren't a hostile group. Astrid noticed her other friendss standing alongside her, all of the assembled adults concentrating on not going overboard the edge of the ship.

Stoick and Gobber at the wheel of the ship, trying to gain control, fighting against the roaring wind and crashing waves that were throwing them around like a flimsy toy boat.

But it was no use.

Astrid cried out as the ship crashed against the beach, Astrid felt a lurch, and couldn't hold on as she was violently flung from the ship.

The woman flew through the air and crashed onto the sand, crumpling into a heap. She slightly raised her head, and saw the other adults, Gobber, and Stoick lying on the sand around her. That had barely registered when she heard cries and shouts coming from further up the beach. The Shield-Maiden turned her head and saw groups of people rushing down the beach towards them.

Astrid opened her mouth, she tried to call out to her friends, to the strangers, but she couldn't hold her head up, letting it fall back to the sand as she stared up to the dark sky which was spotted with bright stars. Astrid groaned quietly before the world went black, and she knew no more.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hope you enjoyed this chapter!
> 
> On Fanfiction. Net I got this review, and I would love to share it with you, along with my response. :)
> 
> Guest-  
R. Curious, have you seen HTTYD3? Hiccup marries Astrid, not Kala or anyone else for that matter. They have two children. In the end, it is Astrid who Hiccup stays with and not Toothless. Any story that fails to acknowledge that their relationship is one of the most important in and to the HTTYD canon demonstrates a definite lack of understanding concerning the core characters.
> 
> A. Yes I have seen HTTYD3, just a few days ago in fact. I know that Hiccup marries Astrid and I am so happy about that! I love Astrid and Hiccup's relationship and I totally support all fics that have Hiccstrid, as I adore the ship!
> 
> But please keep in mind that this fanfic was 1) written before HTTYD3 (or even RTTE, where Hiccstrid developed alot.) And 2) It's just a simple rewrite, and why I love Hiccstrid and would gladly write it, I disagree that not having the ship in a fic "demonstrates a definite lack of understanding concerning the core characters."
> 
> I am allowed to change things as it's a fanfiction, and an AU at that!
> 
> Tons of amazing fanfictions don't have canon relationships in them, and they still show a beautiful and deep understanding of the characters. And anyways I have not finished this story yet. How do you know that I won't change things or acknowledge what could be been? (Which I plan to do.)
> 
> Don't feel like you have to read if you don't like that it's Hiccup/OC, but I'll keep on doing me :) I write fanfic mainly for myself so I'll do what makes me happy!
> 
> Hopefully that clears things up! If you wish for Hiccstrid fics that have the 'Hiccup runs from Berk' theme, I would be happy to rec them!
> 
> -Ren


	3. Chapter 3

Hiccup was walking throughout the village as dusk settled over the land, with Kala and Elva at his side as he checked on his people and offered his assistance or advice to those who needed it, offering to help patch leaking roofs or helping to divvy up kindling for fires when Loga rushed up to the family, the man barely visible through the pouring rain.

"Chief!" The forge master panted as he rested his hands on his knees, raising one to wipe the sweat from his reddened forehead. "J-Jayden and Jorden sent me to tell you! A boat has crashed on the northside beach, close to the docks!"

"What?!" Hiccup shared a look with Kala, before focusing on the situation. "Loga, please watch Elva!" Hiccup gently pushed his young daughter over to the man, who nodded and grasped her shoulder. "Kala with me." With Kala at his side, the man grasped the edges of his mask which lay against his cloak, pulling it up and over his head as he rushed towards the beach, wishing Toothless was there, but the Dragon was currently eating at the stables. As Hiccup approached the beach he spotted that a crowd was gathered with Monstrous Nightmare gel lanterns, the flickering flames safe from the pouring rain, and tools, waiting for their chief before they approached the strangers.

Hiccup moved through the crowd, which shifted to allow the chief and his wife through, a lantern being handed to him as the chief stepped onto the beach, leading his people towards the broken boat, already spotting a few people scattered on the sand of the beach amongst the broken wood and random supplies that were most likely thrown from the ship when it collided with the beach.

As Hiccup approached he saw one of the people move, the womans head ddropping the sand and rolling to stare up at the dark night sky above her.

"Get these people to Mery! Use stretchers to transport them safely!" Hiccup pointed groups of his people to the random people scattered throughout the wet sand, beginning to walk toward the girl he had seen moving mmoments before, motioning for Kala to join him. "Do not share any information with them! I will speak with them first to decide whether or not they are a threat!"

Hiccup knew the chances of these strangers being of a group that knew his identity was low, but you could never be too careful.

As Hiccup reached the girl he noticer that she had moved again, this time her face was facing away from him. Hiccup crouched carefully, a gloved hand reaching out to cup the womans chin, tilting it to turn the strangers head towards him.

Hiccup felt his heart freeze, before terror filled his mind.

Hiccup shot up from the sand almost as if shocked, stumbling away from the unconscious woman on the sand.

Those beautiful blue eyes.

The blonde hair pulled back into a braid.

The same spiked skirt, the same well-used axe after all of these years.

Astrid Hofferson was on Hiccups island.

His home.

They had found him.

Hiccup felt his breathing quicken, panic filling her world, his vision darkening.

A hand landed on his shoulder.

Hiccup jumped, twirling to see Kala.

"Hiccup, my dear?" Kala drew close, concern for her husband clear in her green eyes. "Are you alright?"

"N-no. Kala, these people, this woman.." Hiccup reached out, grasping Kala's hand as he slowly calmed his panicked breathing. "They are from Berk. They know me."

Hiccup watched as Kala's eyes widened, a quiet gasp escaping her lips, before her eyes narrowed.

"Don't worry my love. We will get them back to their home within the week and they will not know that you are here." Kala reached up, placing a light kiss on the chiefs cheek. "I promise. Now let's get this woman to Mery."

Hiccup brought in a shaky breath, before nodding and grabbing Astrid's arms, Kala grabbing her legs and depositing her on the stretcher that had been left beside the group by one of Mery's assistants.

As a pair of her assistants came by and took the stretcher, along with Hiccup's previous crush, away, Hiccup stood back beside Kala and watched the rest of the Berkians be whisked away, trying to see if he recognized any of them.

And he most certainly did.

Hiccups heart dropped lower and lower as he saw them pass.

Snotlout, Fishlegs, Ruffnut and Tuffnut and... Gobber?

Hiccup felt the blood drain from his already whitening face as the Berkian forge master was carried past, as he knew that the man never went on boating trips, unless he was accompanying...

Stoick the Vast.

Hiccups eyes followed the man as his stretcher passed, eyes wide and jaw clenched as he thought about his past with these people.

Without waiting for Kala or dismissing the people waiting for further instruction from him, Hiccup turned and stormed away, only focusing on escaping the inquisitive looks from the villagers watching the proceedings of the rescuing of the "strangers" on the beach.

As Hiccup walked towards the hill where his house was located, Toothless bounded over to him, concern clear in the dragons large eyes and the way he warbled and butted Hiccup with his skull.

"Hey bud... let's get home, alright?" Hiccup sadly smiled at the dragon, pulling himself onto Toothless's back as the Night Fury quickly took to the skies and used his powerful wings to propel the pair towards the home atop the hill.

As Hiccup dismounted and walked into his house, he hesitated at the doorway, looking back to see Kala, clutching the hand of their daughter who she must have picked up from Loga, starting up the hill towards Hiccup.

Hiccup sighed and turned away, entering the household and preparing himself to bring up less than pleasant memories when he was inevitably asked about his actions by Kala.

As Hiccup sat at the kitchen table, one hand absentmindedly patting Toothless as he stared down at the grain of the table, contemplating what he was going to do to fix this mess.

Hiccup straightened as he heard the front door open, two voices being heard before the door was audibly shut.

"Mom, can I see dad before you tuck me in? I didn't get to show him the project me and Russel made!" Hiccup smiled as the voice of his daughter was heard, the ten year-old excitedly talking to her mother.

"No, I'm sorry my little princess." Kala was heard replying, her voice soft and apologetic. "Your father is very busy. But I'm sure if you show him tomorrow, he would he delighted to see it!"

"Aww..."

"Go on Pumpkin, it is time for bed. Go get changed and get in bed. I'll come up to tuck you in soon."

"Alright mom." Elva sighed, before the sound of her feet running up the stairs was heard, the young child heading towards her room.

Hiccup looked up at Kala as she entered the room, the womans eyes trained on her husband as she pulled out a chair from the kitchen table, a hand reaching across the desk to rest on her husbands arm.

"Hiccup..." Kala offered him a slight smile. "Do you want to talk about it? About... them?"

Hiccup took a deep breath, steeling himself. "That woman, she was... she was Astrid. Astrid Hofferson." Hiccup breathed the name of the girl who had been the target of his affections for the majority of his youth.

Kala's eyes widened in shock, and then narrowed angrily. Hiccup had shared the stories of his past, and how the group of teens had bullied him. Kala had a lot of hate stored up for that group of teens, now adults, that had made her husbands life a living hell.

Kala sighed, and shook her head.

"I think it's better for us to go to bed at the moment. You can deal with this situation in the morning, and I'll be with you every step of the way." Kala stood, reaching out to offer a hand to Hiccup, who gratefully took it and stood up, following her to the stairs as she led him to their room, only stopping to step into Elva's room to tuck her in, kissing the young girl goodnight.

《◇》

Hiccup nervously paced back and forth in the living room, Kala and Elva watching him, seated at the small table.

The night had passed, and it was the morning after the Berkians had arrived on Drakoak's shores.

"So dad, those people from your past are here? The ones you told me you hated?" Elva tilted her head, looking up at her anxious father.

Hiccup smiled grimly. She was a curious child like he once was, she even looked like him, with his brown-red hair and bright green eyes.

"Yes. They're here." Hiccup sighed. "Here on Drakoak."

"They hate dragons... Don't they?" Kala murmured.

"Yes. That's why I left. They wish to kill all dragons, regardless of the dragons actions." Hiccup morosely explained. At that, Elva gasped and nervously glanced out the window to confirm that her Razorwhip, Sparkles, was still safe and sound outside.

Hiccup smiled, and patted her on the head, Toothless next to him. "Don't worry Sunshine. I won't let them hurt you or the dragons. I promise. I'll get them off of Berk as soon as possible. Don't you wo-"Hiccup was cut off as the door slammed open. He swiveled around, and saw Samuel, panting, with his Triplestryke Blaze, visible behind him. "Samuel?"

"They…. They've woken up!" Samuel panted. Hiccup froze for a second, then reached over his shoulder, and grabbed his mask, pulling it over his shoulder. He stormed toward the door with Toothless behind him before he turned toward Kala, who had Elva next to her.

"You two, please... stay here. I don't want either of you to get hurt."

"Hiccu- All right." Kala began to protest, before stopping and letting out a sigh. "Be safe." And with that, Hiccup dashed out the door, hopped onto Toothless, and flew off towards Mery, the healers, hut, with Samuel following on Blaze. Hiccup called back to his family, who was stood in the doorway of the house, and Samuel who was following him.

"Remember! Protocol 18; Call me Vaux when any outsiders are around! Got it?"

"Got it!" They all responded. Samuel called down to Blaze, who turned and spiraled down to the village square where a group of people where stood, heading to spread the word that Protocol 18 had been put into motion.

《◇》

Astrid sat on a bench in the hut they had awoken in, her friends sitting next to her, Gobber and Stoick across the room on another bench.

A woman, presumably the healer that had bandaged their wounds, sat next to the door, a guarded expression on her face.

Astrid was about to demand an answer to where they were when the door of the room flew open and a man walked in, wearing a black mask, cloak, and weird kind of suit, looking to be made out of... dragon scales, although Astrid wasn't able to tell what kind of dragon they were from.

The woman next to the door stood up and bowed deeply, the man inclining his masked head to her.

"Greetings Chief." Astrid stared in shock. This thin and lanky man was chief? It looked like he had no muscle! Astrid almost stood up, but Stoick took the job for her.

"Where are we?!" Stoick cried "Who are you?" The man leaned close to the woman, and whispered something hard to hear something about a protocol, before he turned back to Stoick.

"You are on the island of Drakoak, a tribe that I am chief of. I am Vaux. This lady is Mery, the clan healer." The man gestured to the healer. "The real question is, who are you?" The man, Vaux, clasped his hands behind his back, tilting his head. Astrid was unnerved by the unemotional black mask that the lanky man wore, disliking her inability to see the mans eyes or expression.

"We are from the Berk tribe. I am Stoick the Vast, the Chief, and this is Gobber, our forge master. Those are five of our best Warriors." Stoick nodded to the group of adults sitting on the bench across from him and Gobber. The masked man nodded before Stoick stood and stepped forward, getting close to Vaux. "Why are you wearing a mask?" Astrid leaned in, curious about the answer from the man.

"I wear a mask because I was in an accident many years ago. I don't want to unnerve my villagers with my scars." Vaux nodded. Astrid frowned. A chief shouldn't have to hide his features. She wondered what his real face looked like. She was about to inquire about it, when the door was thrown open again, banging against the wall as a little girl ran in, an older woman rushing in behind her as she reached for the child.

"Hi- Vaux I'm sorry! She got away from me!" The older woman cried out, looking nervous and apologetic as she explained what had happened to the masked man.

"Daddy! I was worried about you!" The girl, looking to be around ten or eleven, ran over to Vaux, and hugged him. When the girl turned to face them, Astrid froze in shock.

The girl looked like... no, she looked exactly like... Hiccup.

Hiccup. The boy who had been missing for thirteen years.

The Berk tribe had looked for him when he had disappeared, but to no avail.

Stoick gasped, then stepped forward, about to speak.

Vaux turned and quickly shoved the girl into the hands of the woman who had followed her, the pair quickly rushing out the door, before he turned to the group.

"You will stay here. In this hut, this room. I will come to collect you tomorrow to lead you around our village before we have a discussion on how to get you off my island as quick as possible. Do not try to leave if you value your life. Good day." Vaux swiftly left, and the Healer left to stand outside, leaving the group with a stern glare sent in their direction.

The group stared at each other, shocked into silence.

"That child…" Gobber muttered, uncertainty clear in his eyes. "She..."

"She looked like... like Hiccup." Stoick murmured, brow furrowed as he thought about his presumed dead son.

"We can't just let that lie." Astrid was determined to find out why the girl was a replica of Berks old heir, Hiccup. "We must demand an answer next time this... Vaux speaks to us."

"Agreed." Stoick nodded, determination clear in his gaze as he agreed with the younger woman.

They were going to figure out who this young girl was, and why she bore a shocking resemblance to Berks old heir.

* * *


	4. Chapter 4

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Apologies for any delays for posting in the future, I joined an unarmed marching team at the end of August and practices and events have been consuming all my free time, and my few bits of freedom I used to write one-shots lol, so my chaptered fics have been suffering.
> 
> -Ren

Hiccup confidently strode down the path leading to Mery's hut, preparing himself to wear Vaux's persona as he confronted the people from his past.

The people from _Berk_

Hiccup couldn't believe that the Berkians just had to crash their boat upon his island. Over a decade of carefully keeping his identity concealed from anyone outside of Drakoak and now the years of hard work and careful protection of his identity could all possibly be rendered worthless in a moment if he was recognized as the long-lost heir of the Berk clan.

Hiccup reached up a gloved hand and carefully adjusted his mask, not breaking his stride as he made sure his features would not be visible. Kala and Elva were striding beside him, concern for her husband clear in Kala's eyes as she clutched her daughter's hand as they store beside Hiccup. Their dragons, Rose the Nadder and Sparkles the Razorwhip, trailed behind them, with Toothless at Hiccup's side, the large and intimidating Night Fury keeping a reassuring presence to Hiccup's left.

As the group turned around a curve in the road and Mery's hut came into view, Hiccup slowed his pace as Oakley, the first commander of the Drakoak army, ran up to him.

"Vaux, sir!" Oakley, sat atop his Monstrous Nightmare, Spitfire, snapped a brief salute to Hiccup.

"Yes, Oakley?" Hiccup stood next to Spitfire, resting a hand on the dragon's side as he stared up at his trusted friend and commander of his army.

"It's those Berkians, Sir! Mery told me to pass along a message that she just can't handle it anymore! They won't shut up, they just keep on demanding to leave Mery's hut!" Oakley groaned, gesturing wildly with his hands. Hiccup sighed, and then shook his head, annoyance clear in his gaze.

"I'll show them around to get them out of Mery's way. Oakley, you go and collect our A-team dragon riders. Meet me at the training arena in… twenty minutes, alright?" Hiccup motioned to the Arena in the distance, which was situated next to the Great Hall, between it and the woods. "I think we should give our visitors a... show of our abilities."

Oakley nodded, and then quickly saluted before he gently nudged Spitfire and then took off to the sky. Hiccup turned to Kala and Elva, his gaze taking on an authoritative side. "Do not speak to them, alright? Let me deal with it. No matter what they say. " Hiccup sternly gazed at Elva, who had the decency to bow her head obediently.

"Fine dad," Elva muttered.

"Hic-" Kala stopped herself from speaking her husband's true name as she reached out to rest a hand upon his shoulder. "Vaux are… are you sure about this..?"

"Kala. I have to face them sometime. Might as well show them around and then get them off the island as soon as possible." Hiccup sighed. "There's no use in delaying it."

"Wouldn't it be better to hide the dragons?" Kala questioned. "For their safety?"

"You know that would be impossible. There's too many." Hiccup shook his head. "We just have to deal with it. Kala, Elva, you have your weapons?" He didn't want them to be defenseless against the Berkians.

"Yes, dad." Elva gestured to her quiver and bow, both slung casually over her shoulder.

"Yes, Vaux. Do you have yours?" Kala nodded and motioned to her spear, which was securely strapped across her back.

"Of course, Kala." Hiccup was basically a walking armory. He had concealed knives everywhere, Inferno, a special sword he had made that could be set alight, was on a sheath at his side, and two swords were safely settled in sheaths across his back. "I also have Toothless, and you guys have your dragons. Oh, it seems we have arrived. Remember what I said."

Hiccup adjusted his mask and straightened his cloak. Then he strode confidently into the hut, leaving Kala and Elva to wait outside. Mery looked up when the door slammed open and then rushed over to him, the small medical woman speaking in the Drakoak language, which was not Norse, so the Berkians would not understand. It was a language called Bosnian, which Hiccup had learned along his travels throughout the world and had been the language of the Drakoak people for centuries.

"Šef! Ovi barbari neće prestati da me gnjavim!" Mery cried, her hands flying through the air as she ranted to her chief, who listened patiently.

_-Chief! These barbarians won't stop pestering me!-_

"Ne brinite, Mery, ja ću se pobrinuti za njih. Ja ću ih vode u obilazak sela. Oni bi trebali biti uskoro otišao." Hiccup rested his hand on Mery's shoulder, and then turned to the Berkians, eyes narrowing.

_\- Do not worry, Mery, I'll take care of them. I will lead them on a tour of the village to get them out of your hair. They should be gone soon.-_

Mery nodded gratefully and then walked past the Berkians, and into the back room of her hut, pulling the door shut behind her and disappearing from view. Hiccup turned his gaze back to the Berkians, who were collectively watching him.

"Come with me. I will lead you around my village, and we will speak about your situation and options along the way. Whoever, or…whatever you see, you will not harm my people nor our companions." Hiccup finished with a glare. "If you value your life, that is, of course."

《◇》

Astrid was about to ask again when they would be able to leave the hut they had all woken up in when the door slammed open. The man that Astrid remembered from yesterday, Vaux, quickly strode in, letting the door slam shut loudly behind him.

The healer woman, who had previously introduced herself as Mery, jumped up from her seat across from them and ran over to him, rambling angrily in some other language, the native language of these people, Astrid assumed.

Vaux smiled and rested his hands on the woman's shoulder, and answered in the same language, a comforting tone in his voice. Astrid heard the word 'Mery' but that was the only thing she understood. The woman then swept past them and vanished into a back room. Vaux turned to them, light glinting off his ominous mask.

"Come with me. I will lead you around my village, and we will speak about your situation and options along the way. Whoever, or…whatever you see, you will not harm my people nor our you value your life, that is, of course." Astrid briefly wondered what he meant by 'companions', but then the door opened, and Vaux had swept outside, leaving them to follow. Astrid stood up and took the responsibility of leading the group, stepping out first after the mysterious man.

And then she understood.

_Dragons._

Fire breathing, malicious, and deadly _dragons._

_Everywhere._

Astrid stepped backward, her jaw slipping open in shock, ignoring the others questions about what she had seen. Right in front of her was a bright silver dragon, with razor-sharp scales… a Razorwhip! And on top of the dragon sat a…

_Ten-year-old girl?_

The same girl from yesterday...

And next to the girl was a brightly colored dragon, with sharply tipped spines all around its tail.

Deadly Nadder… with a woman, around the same age, Astrid presumed Vaux to be sat atop it. And in front of them sat a…

_Night Fury._

The unholy offspring of Night and Death.

The murderer of thousands of Vikings.

On top of the black dragon, sat Vaux, blending in with his black cloak, suit, and mask, and Astrid now connected the mask and cloak scales to be Night Fury scales. Before she could get a word out, Stoick shoved past her impatiently.

"What is the hold-up, Astrid?!" Stoick rudely barged past her, impatient and gruff as always.

"Yeah, Astrid!" The other young adults echoed their chief before following Stoick out.

Stoick abruptly skidded to a stop, the other young adults standing next to him, jaws literally hitting the floor, collecting flies as they stared out at the surrounding creatures.

"That's a dragon!" Stoick cried. Vaux tilted his head, eyes visibly rolling through the slits in his mask.

"Yes, it is. Aren't you a bright one?" Sarcasm dripped from his tone.

Snotlout stepped forward, and Astrid cringed. Snotlout never was the best choice to handle face-offs.

"Why aren't you killing them?! They're evil mindless beasts!" Before Snotlout could get out anymore, there was a flash of silver, and then the Razorwhip was three feet from Snotlout, who was pinned a few feet off the ground by the dragon's tail. The young girl atop the dragon leaned forward and hissed.

"They're not evil! Sparkles here, she is my protector and friend!"

"… Sparkles?" Tuffnut tilted his head stupidly.

"I think it's because the scales sparkle in the sunli-" Ruffnut started to theorize.

"Ruff, Tuff, Shut up!" Astrid hit both of the said twins on the head with her ax.

Vaux then nudged the Night Fury's side, and it stepped forward. Vaux pulled up next to the Razorwhip and whispered something in its ears, and it withdrew its tail, letting Snotlout fall to the ground, crumpling in a dusty heap, embarrassed, but unharmed. Fishlegs hurried forward and helped him up, leading him back to the group.

The young adults stood in a group, Astrid, Stoick, and Gobber at the front, facing Vaux, the girl, and the other woman, and their dragons.

"Elva! These are our guests. You are not to hurt them!" Vaux scolded the girl, who crossed her arms defensively.

"But Dad, he was insulting them! They are not mindless!" The girl, now known as Elva, and Vaux's daughter, glared at Snotlout, who shrunk back timidly.

"Elva, they do not know dragons as we do. If they attack our dragons, I permit you to Slice an' Dice. Alright?" Snotlout paled considerably at the mention of 'Slice an' Dice'. The girl hesitated, and then nodded, her eyes brightening.

"Fine, Dad. I really hope they try to attack." The girl grinned, watching Snotlout like a hawk.

Vaux and his dragon turned to Stoick and Gobber and began to speak.

"As you may have noticed, we ride dragons in this village. We are not like your people, and they are not like the dragons you know. They do not hunt us or desire to hurt us. But if you hurt us or them, they will not hesitate to make a quick meal out of you. Understood?" The man coolly explained. Stoick frowned, but then agreed, having been left with little else to do.

"Fine."

"I am the Chief here, also known as Vaux the Dragon Trainer, or Conquer, but I prefer Trainer. This spitfire over here," Vaux gestured to Elva, still sat upon her Razorwhip. "She is my daughter. And this lovely woman over here, is my wife, Kala." Vaux gestured to the woman on his other side, who was tall and thin, freckles covering her face and arms, with shoulder-length brown hair, with blond streaks. The woman stared, eyes filled with hate, at Astrid, for reasons nobody knew. Vaux then noticed Snotlout was staring at his wife, lust clear in his lidded eyes as he examined the woman, eyes lingering on the curves of the woman that was settled on top of her Nadder.

Snotlout had made a mistake.

"Hey, you." Vaux snapped his fingers loudly and pointed at Snotlout.

"What?" Snotlout obnoxiously drawled, sending a wink in Kala's direction before turning his gaze to Vaux.

"Is there any reason you're staring at my wife?" He coolly tilted his head. Snotlout smirked.

"Yeah, she's pretty. And anyway, no woman out there can resist me." Snotlout then blew a kiss to Kala, who glared at him disgustedly. There was a flash, and then the group saw that Vaux had launched himself off the Night Fury, and to the ground, landing on top of Snotlout. He then drew a sword from a sheath on his side. Astrid noticed there were two more on his back, but then there was another bright flash of light, and the sword burst into…

_Flames?_

The man, Vaux, was holding his sword, the sharpened blade blazing brightly, inches from Snotlout's face.

The pinned man screamed.

"Not my face! My beautiful face! AAAAAH! Snotlout shied away from the fire, hands raising to cover his eyes. Then Vaux stood up, drawing his sword away and extinguishing it.

"Leave my wife alone, and I won't burn you to a crisp." The man then extinguished the sword, and put it in the sheath, and then turned and hopped on his dragon, who was growling. "This is Toothless. The Razorwhip, as mentioned earlier, is Sparkles, my wife's dragon is Rose. Hurt them, and I will not hesitate to hurt you. Now. Please, follow me." The man set off down a path, the afternoon sun glinting off his armor. The group looked at each other, and then with Fishlegs supporting Snotlout, who was sobbing about a missing tooth, they set off down the path after the Drakoak chief, his family, and their dragons. After passing a few groups of villagers and dragons, who were all conversing in their native tongue, and after a few glares from the villagers, Vaux slowed to a stop outside a large building that was placed next to the beach. Astrid could still see the shattered remains of their boat, which had been reduced to a few long pieces of wood, crates of food and supplies, and miscellaneous bits and pieces from the preciously sea-worthy boat.

"This is our great hall, where we partake in meals and hold meetings. I would invite you inside, but I believe Terrible Terror Training is taking place for the younger riders. I will take you around there later. Next to it, is our main destination, the Training Arena. Oakley, the first commander of our army, and our A-team riders are awaiting us there. Let us hurry." Vaux then nudged his dragon, and it loped off towards a circular arena, next to the woods, much like the one on Berk, the others following.

The group of Berkians jogged after them, and slowed to a stop behind Vaux, as they entered the arena. Vaux instructed them to sit against the wall and to stay away from the dragons. The group followed his instructions and sat down next to the door, which Vaux had closed. Then he and Toothless flew up and hovered over them, the chief leaning slightly over the side of his dragon to address the gathered people below him.

"Now we will show you what a true connection to a dragon looks like. Elva, you and your team go first." Vaux then flew down, and his dragon stood in front of the door, Hiccup leisurely sitting atop him.

Elva met up with a group of people in the middle of the arena, two twins, on a Zippleback, one fierce looking girl, on a small Monstrous Nightmare, and Elva rose above them, on her Razorwhip, Rose.

"A-team! Show form!" The dragons then rose into a diamond shape and took to the air. The Berkians watched, shocked, as the dragons swirled and flipped, doing breathtaking drops and loops, coming dangerously close to the ground, and each other, but never quite making contact. The Berks gasped as the group landed gracefully. Vaux clapped and then waved his hand.

"Okay, go head off to do your normal duties. Oakley, go escort them." Vaux motioned to another man who was standing in the corner. He had black hair, and was tall, with muscles on his muscles. The man rolled his eyes.

"Sure, we all know they can't make it home without a map."

"Hey! I feel insulted! … Hey bro, did you pack the map?" one of the twins questioned.

"No dude, I thought you did! Come on Jayden!" The other twin answered.

"Oh… sorry, Jorden." The first one, Jayden, sighed. The man clapped them on the back, then took off, the others following. That only left Vaux, his wife, and the Berkians in the arena. Vaux turned to face them.

"My wife will stay on the ground to watch you, while I show you real tricks." The man smiled as the Berkians looked shocked. What the A-team had done weren't real tricks? The man then jumped onto the back of the dragon, and reached down, clicking something that made the dragons tail fly open. Astrid realized that one side was a prosthetic, and Vaux had just locked it open. It looked like it could be controlled by his foot, so why would he lock it open? Before Astrid could come up with an answer, the pair took off.

The Berkians and Kala stared at the sky, watching as the Dragon and his Rider disappeared into the clouds. A few minutes passed, and then Vaux came hurtling towards the earth.

Without Toothless.


	5. Chapter 5

As the wind tugged at Hiccup's clothing and hair, the young chief smiled, arms flattened to his side as he hurtled towards the ground, head first.

The man could see the Berkians far below, the group staring up at him, a few of them having raised their hands to cover their mouths as they gawped openly.

Hiccup chuckled to himself as he hurtled towards the ground. Looking to his side, the swiftly plummeting chief could see that his loyal companion was falling faster than Hiccup. Just before Toothless was too far past Hiccup, he opened his wings slightly, letting the pair fall into sync, both staring at each other as they fell, gentle smiles gracing their faces. Hiccup rested his arms nonchalantly behind his head, raising his eyebrow as he tilted his head at the Night Fury falling across from him.

"So, nice weather we're having, Toothless." As Hiccup grinned at his friend, Toothless showed his famed toothy smile, and then gestured a wing towards the ground, which they were rapidly approaching. Hiccup nodded quickly and skillfully maneuvered his body through the air so that he was aligned closely over the back of Toothless. Hiccup took a moment to prepare himself before letting out a sharp whistle. Toothless twitched his ears in response, and then snapped his wings open, soaring upward, straight toward Hiccup, who deftly landed on the saddle, the rushing winds forcing him to lie against Toothless's sleek body, arms wrapped tight around the dragons neck as the pair tilted towards. Toothless tucked his wings neatly to his side as they rocketed towards the ground. Allowing one hand to remain upon Toothless's saddle, Hiccup reached one to his side, fiddling with the many straps and latches that covered the sides of his flight suit.

《◇》

Astrid gasped, shocked, as Vaux hurtled toward the ground, the dragon, Toothless, next to him. Both were seemingly relaxed, not scared of the danger their lives were in. Astrid saw Vaux skillfully spin in the air, angling his slim body so he was falling next to Toothless.

What was his plan?

Toothless opened his huge wings, shooting upwards and allowing Vaux to land upon his back, one hand gripping the saddle, one hand gripping something on the weird suit he wore. Astrid and the other young adults sighed in relief as Vaux safely landed on Toothless, as they didn't have to hear Vaux go _"splat"_. Astrid looked up at Kala, who looked tense as she straightened up on her dragon, locking her jaw. Astrid felt like something else was to come. She looked up, just in time, and saw that Vaux was…

_Jumping._

"What the..?" Astrid let her question trail off, eyes widening in shock and horror as she presumably watched a man about to fall to his death.

Vaux plummeted towards them, arms pressed flat against his sides, his dark cloak fluttering through the air behind him, Toothless slowly circled, slanting downwards in order to spiral down and to stay above Vaux. Astrid covered her eyes, not wanting to see him… splatter. Astrid slowly peeked through her fingers as her curiosity got the better of her, and saw Vaux whip his arms out to his sides. And attached to them were… _wings?_

Now that Vaux was close enough for Astrid to see, she could clearly see that attached to Vaux's hand by a simple glove, were fabric-type material wings which connected to his strange suit, which Astrid now understood the purpose of. Vaux gracefully circled down, slowly making his way to the arena floor.

The gathered group all stepped back as he gently set down, running slightly to catch his balance as Toothless landed behind him, wings up, striking an impressive sight, the imposing chief and his dragon both looking mysterious and fierce as they stood in the middle of the arena. As Vaux lowered his arms, he pulled off his gloves and let the fabric wings fall beneath his cloak and out of sight. Toothless lowered his large wings and moved forward to stand beside Vaux, allowing his rider to hop onto his back. Vaux and Toothless paced towards the group of Berkians, stopping in front of them, Vaux raising his hands to motion at Toothless.

"Now that is the real ability of a dragon rider and their dragon. Any questions?" Astrid could hear a smirk in his voice, making her narrow her eyes as she crossed her arms across her chest.

"How did you force the dragon to do that?" Stoick was staring at Toothless, curiosity and a slight hint of wonder in his eyes.

"Force?" Astrid heard shock in Vaux's voice as the man tensed, obviously angered at the question. "I didn't force him to do anything. He is my best friend, doing everything out of his own free will!" The man crossed his arms, and the large dragon shook his head and snorted, green eyes narrowing as he glared at the Berkians. Kala and her dragon stepped forward, and went over to Vaux, leaning in and quietly whispering in his ear so Astrid and the others could only hear little bits of the conversation.

"-cup, are you sure…they…find out...These people…what if…danger…dragons…your daughter! How could… even think…it?" Vaux leaned back from Kala and sighed loudly, resting a hand on his wife's shoulder.

"I know what I'm doing Kala. I promise you." Vaux then turned to the Berkians and dismounted, Toothless standing at his side. He cleared his throat, and then stared straight at the Berkians. Astrid noticed that he had bright green eyes, visible through the eyeholes in his helmet.

"Any more questions?" Vaux tilted his head, waiting for a response.

"I have a question about your daughter…" Snotlout raised his hand, like he was back in school.

"What?" Vaux's tone took on a dangerous edge as the topic of Elva was brought up, Kala inhaling sharply at his side.

"Why does she look so much like our old heir, Hiccup Haddock?"

Astrid face-palmed mentally. Subtle Snotlout, real subtle. She then directed her gaze to Vaux, who had frozen, Toothless narrowing his eyes beside his rider. Vaux uncomfortably cleared his throat, and looked to the side, exchanging a glance with Kala.

The pair obviously knew something. Had the long-gone Berkian heir been here, on this dragon-loving island? Astrid listened carefully, waiting for his answer…

《◇》

Hiccup froze, groaning on the inside. The group was waiting for his answer. He cleared his throat and looked away, exchanging a desperate glance with Kala as his mind raced, the chief attempting to come up with a story as quickly as he could. He looked back at go the Berkains and coughed awkwardly, shifting upon his feet as his gaze fell to a spot on the arena wall over Stoick's shoulder.

"Well, you see…"

Vaux paused as Kala stepped forward, putting an arm across his chest to cut him off, subtly winking at him before turning to address the Berkians.

"Kala..?"

"Shh, Vaux. I'll tell the story. I was his wife after all."


	6. Chapter 6

Astrid waited for Vaux to answer, wanting to know what happened, and just how Hiccup had ended up on this island.

"Well, you see…"

Vaux paused as Kala stepped forward, putting a pale and freckled arm across his chest to cut him off as she looked at the Berkians.

"Kala..?" Vaux turned a questioning glance to his wife.

"Shh, Vaux. I'll tell the story. I was his wife after all."

Astrid flinched, her eyes widening as Kala's words registered. She had been married to _Hiccup_? But Astrid was-

"His wife?" Stoick gasped, taken aback by the woman's words. "But, my son-"

"Your son ran away from what you called his home thirteen years ago. He washed up on our shores twelve years ago, Toothless here," Kala motioned to the great black dragon, "was the one that found him, he was unconscious along with being severely dehydrated and starved, almost dead with the injuries he had."

Stoick gasped. "Injuries-?"

"Yes. Your son had a fractured skull, a broken arm, and he was covered in gouges and scrapes. I have to assume it was from his body being thrown amongst the rocks that make up our shore. The very rocks that tore your ship apart, to be exact." Kala folded her arms, exhaling evenly as she looked down at the group of Berkians. "He would have died if he hadn't been found and rushed to Mery, our healer. It took him months to recover from his wounds."

Kala glanced down, a brief expression of sorrow crossing her face before she spoke again.

"I was around his age, and had no job or assignment in the clan yet, so Mery assigned me to watch over him and make sure he healed well. I spent months at his side. I got to know him well." Kala chuckled, eyes moving to glance at Astrid. "I fell in love with him."

The Berkians were silent, eyes widened with curiosity as the woman before them told her tale, told of how she had known their heir. How she had _loved_ their heir.

"You lot have probably figured it out by now, but I'll say it. Vaux may be my husband, but he is not Elva's father." Kala looked to Stoick, her cool gaze burning into the Berkian chief. "Hiccup was my husband, and Elva was his daughter."

"I have a... granddaughter..?" Stoick gasped, eyes drifting to stare at the arena gate, where Elva had exited with her team only a few minutes ago, eyes widening at the thought of the girl, his newly-discovered granddaughter. "My son is _married_?"

"Was." Vaux's low tone disrupted Stoick's shock.

The group turned their gazes back to Kala as the woman sighed heavily, eyes drifting to the ground.

"He was married - Hiccup." Kala shook her head, lips dipping downwards into a sad frown. "He left with Vaux to go on a scouting mission when I was eight months along with Elva. Only Vaux came back. We had to have his funeral with no body."

"What happened..?" Astrid was shocked. Hiccup was *_dead_*? And he had been in a marriage and had fathered a child? That didn't sound anything like the meek and quite frankly, useless viking she had known in her teenage years.

"Dragon hunters." Vaux snarled, his eyes visibly narrowing under his mask as he spoke. "They _slaughtered_ him right in front of me on their ship, and tossed his body overboard. I tried to recover him, but I was too late."

"I... I need time to think about all of this." Stoick brushed a hand through his hair, obviously shaken up by the knowledge Kala and Vaux had given them. "Vaux, I thank you and your people for their kindness for saving us and having your healer look us over, but what will you be doing with us? We need to return to Berk... I have to discuss this with my council... we need to have a funeral for him after all these years.. "

"Of course, that is very understandable. We will be sending you back today, if all goes to plan."

"Today?" Snotlout spoke up. "That's fast!"

"Yes. My men are preparing a ship for you right now. If you all will grace us with your presence for the feast in the great hall, it should be ready to go when you are finished. You should be back on Berk in a matter of days after that, if the sailing conditions keep up. And speaking of the feast, I believe it is time!" Vaux beckoned, gesturing to a Viking, one of the many who were gathered to watch the flights. The Viking nodded respectfully, and yanked a lever which slowly opening the gates go the arena.

Vaux led the Vikings out, Toothless beside him. Astrid quickened her pace, wanting to ask him something.

"You knew Hiccup, right?"

"I knew him well." Vaux tilted his head in thought. "I would go so far as to say he was my closest friend, before he passed."

"Did he..." Astrid hesitated, feeling a warm heat rush to her cheeks. "Did he ever talk about us? From Berk?"

_Did he ever talk about me?_

"Ahhhh, yes." Vaux nodded. "He did, on occasion, tell me about the many people from his homeland."

Astrid waited for him to continue, but Vaux remained silent, turning his eyes away as the group walked swiftly up to the doors of the Great Hall, two stationed guards moving, with a smile and shared greeting to their chief, to open the door for them, Vaux and Kala leading them inside, with their dragons splitting off to walk to a feeding station that seemed to be just for dragons that lay to the side of the great hall.

As Vaux led the Berkians to sit down at an empty table in the middle of the hall, he called a server over who listed off a selection of foods and prompted the Berkians chose their foods, which was basically just like what they had on Berk, a lot of meats and savory dishes, which excited the Berkians - who had been eating ship foods for the weeks they had been on the ocean before crashing on Drakoak.

As they drank from pitchers of mead and conversed between themselves, Vaux left them at their table, and walked up to a table in the far back of the hall, reserved for just for the chief and his family, where his wife and daughter were waiting. 

As he reached the table he leaned over and kissed Kala, before sitting next to her and hugging Elva, who was on his other side. He dug in to his food, - which Kala had ordered for him while he was settling the Berkians at their own table - chatting and laughing with his family while sharing jokes and short conversations with his people who would walk past the table to get food, or come up to share a few sentences with their chief. 

Watching from halfway across the hall, Astrid noted that the man didn't take off his mask despite the fact that he was eating, he just awkwardly stuck the food in bits and pieces under the mask, which seemed a very inefficient way to eat, which could have easily been remedied by removing the mask.

_Why he didn't take it off..?_

His scars couldn't be _that_ bad. Astrid pondered that while the others ate, wondering why Vaux would conceal his face at all times… what was he trying to hide?

Astrid was about to talk to the others, when Vaux walked up with one arm wrapped around Kalas waist, the other on Elva's shoulder.

"You guys almost done?" Vaux questioned.

"Yeah, thank you so much for letting us in on this feast." Stoick nodded his head, showing respect for the other chief, before his eyes drifted to stare at Elva, the chief obviously intrigued by his granddaughter.

Vaux gestured for them to get up from their table, and then he led the Berkians out, Kala and Elva at his side. After leaving the great hall, they walked past the arena and down toward the docks.

Since most of the villagers were still at the feast, the streets were clear, and quiet. Once they got to the docks, two men were waiting for them, a ship at the ready. As the men unfurled the sails, Vaux gathered the Berkians in a semicircle around him.

"It has been a pleasure to meet the chief of Berk, and his people. I only have one request for you, and I do hope that you uphold it, in memory of all my people have done for you." Vaux's eyes glinted behind his mask, staring at Stoick, who paused for a moment then nodded, wondering what Vaux wanted to say.

"I only ask that when you return to Berk, thay you and your people here do not mention our connection with dragons to your people."

Gobber stepped forward, leaning on his peg leg. "And why is that, Vaux? Why do you want us to hide that from our people?"

"You're Berkians." Vaux raised an unimpressed brow. "Possibly the most know clan of Vikings for its hatred of dragons. At the mention of dragons everyone on your island would come running to massacre our dragons and my people. Do you understand why I ask this of you?"

Ignoring the grumbled protests of Snotlout, Stoick reached out and shared a firm handshake with Vaux, sealing their agreement.

"Good sailing." Vaux saluted Stoick as he stepped back, and bowed his head, showing honor for the other chief, before waving at them as they boarded the ship.

Astrid stood by the railing as the ropes attaching them to the dock were untied, watching as the dock got farther and farther away as Stoick and Gobber navigated the ship toward Berk. Astrid noticed that Vaux wasn't watching them, distracted by Toothless. However, Elva and Kala were watching them leave. Kalas eyes unnerved her… They were burning with hate and… relief? Was she glad to see them - to see her go?

Astrid shook her head, wondering why Kala seemed to have so much hate against her.

She turned her gaze to Elva, but couldn't tell what the girl was feeling as the child watched the ship drift further and further away.

Astrid was about to turn back and talk to the other Berkians about everything they had found out, when she saw Toothless playfully jump onto Vaux, knocking the man to the ground and sending his mask flying off of his head.

"Guys!" Astrid hissed, drawing the attention of everyone else on board, who moved over to her - besides Stoick and Gobber, who kept steering the ship. "Vaux's mask, his dragon knocked it off!"

"His stupid dragon is blocking the view!" Tuffnut groaned.

"I can only see his chin but… I don't see any scars…" Fishlegs pointed out.

"Same here, I can see his forehead. No scars." Snotlout nodded. Ruffnut was now balanced on Tuffnut's shoulders, craning her head as she tried to see. Astrid then leaned far over the railing, grabbing onto Fishlegs as she tilted dangerously far over the railing and finally, Toothless shifted to the side to let Vaux get up, and Astrid could see what he really looked like…

"I can see him!"

"What does he look like?" Snoutlout jumped up as he tried to see, but couldn't recreate the position Astrid was in, the woman haphazardly hanging off the side of the boat, one hand gripping the hand of Fishlegs. She squinted and then...

"Auburn hair, I think green eyes? Honestly he looks like, "Astrid paused. "like…" she gasped, as the thought finally hit her.

No.

No way.

Not possible.

He can't-

He couldn't-

But he said he shot down a night Fury, all those years ago…

Toothless was a Night Fury…

Vaux was the rider of Toothless.

Astrid ignored the questions of everyone else and pulled herself back onto the ship. They were getting too far away. Soon it would be too late to turn back. She hurried to the wheel and ran up to Stoick.

"Chief! We need to turn back!" Astrid cried.

"What? Why?! We need to go back to Berk!" Stoick was incredulous.

"Chief… I think Vaux is Hi-" Astrid was interrupted by a thump on the deck. She whirled around, and saw Toothless, Vaux - Hiccup? - on his back, the mask firmly settled over his head, almost as if it had never been removed

"Sorry for the intrusion Stoick, I had just noticed that you, Astrid, left your axe behind…" Vaux twisted to pull an axe out of his saddlebag, Astrid's axe.

The woman stepped forward, reaching to grab it, pulling it from Vaux's grasp with a smile and a few words of thanks.

And then she snapped her fingers, a signal the group had come up with long ago, back in their teenage years.

The other teens jumped at the signal, and then dived at Vaux.

Stoick and Gobber cried out in shock, asking what the young adults thought they were doing, attacking the chief that had saved their lives.

Tuffnut and Ruffnut held Toothless back, avoiding his sharp teeth and claws, while Fishlegs and Snotlout held Vaux down, who was desperately struggling, trying fruitlessly to reach his fire sword, or the twin swords placed on his back.

Snotlout and Fishlegs restrained Vaux's arms, so he couldn't move, couldn't escape.

Astrid, ignoring Gobber and Stoick's questions, stalked up to Vaux, and towered above him, lowering the tip of her axe to the edge of his mask.

She had to find out if what she saw was real.

If he wasn't dead.

"What are you doing?!" Vaux's tone was laced with anger, but underlying that was panic, _fear_.

"Who are you, really?" Astrid began to inch her axe up, dragging Vaux's mask up.

"No! Don't!" Vaux called out as the the mask lifted upwards, revealing his chin. The previously dignified and regal man was his seeming very unchiefly, frantically thrashing and kicking out, trying everything to escape Fishlegs and Snotlouts grasp.

Hiccup struggled. But it was all in vain. Astrid was pulling his mask off. And he was helpless to stop it.

No. no, no.

The mask cleared his nose.

No. Please. No.

Revealed his eyes. His green eyes.

No no no no.

The mask slid off, clattering to the deck. Hiccup closed his eyes, and dropped his head to the deck, feeling hopeless, knowing that they would have recognized him. Knowing it was too late.

Thirteen years of trying to keep any mention of him from reaching Berk, gone in an instant.

"H…Hiccup?" Hiccup opened his eyes, and saw Stoick towering over him, shock and _betrayal _displayed across his face.

Before anything else could happen, Toothless broke free from the twins with a furious roar, bursting through the gathered Vikings to reach his rider, Hiccup jumping quickly onto Toothless's back. Hiccup quickly reached down and picked up his mask from the deck, holding the object that had protected his identity for so long carefully in his hands.

Hiccup looked at the Berkians, who were standing shocked, on the deck of the ship. He took a deep breath, before slamming the mask back over his head, his green eyes burning with rage as he looked at what had used to be his people.

"Don't ever return to Drakoak. Or you will feel my wrath." Hiccup spat out, his voice thick with anger, before Toothless flared his wings and quickly rose into the sky, and flew back toward Drakoak, which was by now just a tiny speck in the distance.

The Berkians all stared at each other as the dragon and its rider flew off into the distance.

"He's… alive?" Fishlegs whispered out

"For all this time?" Astrid added.

The group then turned a collective gaze to Stoick.

What where they going to do now?

Berks heir was _alive._  
  


**Author's Note:**

> Decided to crosspost this from my Fanfiction account. Lemme know what you like and what you dislike. Hopefully updates will be frequent.
> 
> [My Tumblr](https://explorersnotepad.tumblr.com/)


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